Abstract – My aim is to introduce a hitherto unnamed but not unfamiliar juristic-cum-political value and to show how it might help us better understand the nature of modern law and political thought; I name this value ‘opacity’. I elucidate that value by showing where, in our juristic and political thought, it is found. My main aim is to hold this alleged value up to the light, to illuminate exactly what it keeps dark, with a view to answering two questions: could this alleged value really be a value? And, if so, how might we demonstrate this value’s weight? These questions are only posed here, since my expository purpose means there is insufficient time and space to attempt to answer them properly. The main focus of what follows is the common law world and Anglo-phone legal and political philosophy.
Keywords – Opacity, Values, Equality, Dignity